Well tended landscaping increases the aesthetic appeal of all types of real estate. Both individually owned and commercial properties can realize an increase in asset value from such curb appeal. Therefore, maximizing one's real estate investment typically requires ongoing lawn maintenance and landscaping. Unfortunately, during the summer months when grass growth is rapid and/or in warm climate areas with year-round growth patterns, the repetitive mowing schedule, coupled with tedious edging, can become a lengthy, laborious, and even dangerous chore. Further, equipment purchase and maintenance can be expensive.
Unfortunately, even a freshly mowed lawn can appear unkempt if edges are not well maintained. Moreover, nicely trimmed and defined landscape edges can prolong the aesthetic appeal of a singular mowing. Traditionally, edging is accomplished with a gas or electric powered machine, wherein rotation of a sharpened blade within a defined trench zone accomplishes cutting of overgrowth. The cutting depth of the trimming edge relative to the adjacent non-grass surface, and the width of the edged zone between the edges of the grass and non-grass zones are parameters that are usually subject to user control. Unfortunately, this can disadvantageously result in crooked and otherwise unappealingly varied edge zones. Further, the noise generated by such traditional edging devices is not only unpleasant, but effectively limits an individual's ability to accomplish edging late at night or in the early morning hours, disadvantageously forcing many with long-day workweek schedules to accomplish such tasks only on the weekends.
Therefore, borne out of recognition of the appeal of defined edging, numerous devices have been provided for installation about a landscape edge. Some such devices are purely decorative and can actually serve to increase lawn maintenance difficulty, but others are designed with an edge maintenance efficiency improvement in mind.
For example, one type of edge-defining device involves the burial of an elongated barrier-type element, such as a metal strip or plastic edge. While these devices may enhance the appearance of the edged zone following installation, such devices also can increase the difficulty of the edging job. Other buried members include buried U-shaped tracks wherein grass is cut at the base of the track via a wheel with an extended rotational cutter, and buried Y-shaped tracks, wherein grass is also cut by a sharpened wheel along the side of an essentially vertically positioned track member. Although these designs enable quiet edging without the use of electric or gas powered tools, each necessitates use of a sharpened wheel, disadvantageously risking injury from accidental contact with the sharpened wheel and limiting use thereof by some individuals.
Therefore, it is readily apparent that there is a need for an edging system and device, wherein edging efficiency is increased through burial of a J-shaped track, wherein the track not only assists in the definition of the landscape edge, but also enhances safety by enabling quiet grass cutting via rotation of a wheel proximate an underground cutting edge defined along the track J-shape, and wherein the J-shape track also enables installation of one or more design components, including underground edge effects, thus providing aesthetic as well as economic, operational, and safety benefits and avoiding the above-discussed disadvantages.